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Greenpower Racing

St George's Academy currently run a Greenpower Racing club on ​Ruskington Campus where a number of students have the opportunity to build and race cars.

The Greenpower team were featured on BBC's Newsround, where BBC sports reporter, Mike Bushell, travelled to the Academy's Ruskington Campus to find out more about Greenpower. Following is the Newsround feature which was aired nationally:

Tuesday 3rd July – Off to Anglesey we went, with high expectations and got off to a good start, with a 3rd place for Blaze, 6th place for Sirocco and 7th place for Mistral. Blaze was 4 miles ahead of 4th place and only beaten by the best team in competition. In race 2 we did a few minor tweaks, with Blaze gaining 3rd place again and an extra lap on top of the first race. Sirocco finished 4th and Mistral 5th. Overall it was a great event for us, where we also picked up ‘Best Presented Team’

Wednesday 11th July – The Rockingham Heat is always a huge event with all of the top teams turning up. Race 1 was a bit of a disaster. Both Blaze and Mistral had mechanical issues. Unfortunately Mistral was not reparable and is now sat in the workshop ready for repair. Blaze went very well for the first 70 minutes, clocking up 30.9 miles (21st) and a fastest lap of 2:51 around the 1.47 mile track, before it had movement on one of the rear axles. Sirocco trundled round as per usual, clocking up 32.3 miles and finishing 19th.

In Race 2 both cars went off well before a red flag 9 minutes in saw the race halted for 21 minutes before the restart. At which point this allowed us to drive Blaze with more aggression. On lap 12 Blaze put in a 2:28, just 1 second off the fastest lap of the day. It continued to run well, gaining 33.8 miles in a reduced 70 minute race. Quite impressive and 4th place to top it off. Sirocco finished 21st.

Monday 16th July - The first ever race in Lincolnshire, and Blyton Park was the venue. We decided to only take the one car and Blaze was off to a flyer. In Race 1 it went off at a nice gentle pace, clocking up 235.2 miles and 6.4 miles ahead of second place, with the last lap our fastest of the day so far with a 1:44 around the 0.8 mile track.

Race 2 we went off with higher gearing, completing 3 extra laps and a distance of 37.6 miles. With a fastest lap of 1:41 and 7.2 miles (9 laps) ahead of 2nd place. 1st position in both races and comfortable winners.

Looking forward to September we have 2 races, Dunsfold Park on the 9th September and Castle Combe on the 16th September.

Sunday 9th September -

We took all 3 cars with us with the main objective of getting Mistral in to the final and training new driver Abi ready for the rest of the season. In race 1 we had a few little issues with data logging and gear ratios but it was good race all round for Blaze, finishing 3rd (32 miles), just 12 seconds off 2nd place and the fastest lap of the day for the F24 category. Mistral had to achieve 30.5 miles to get it into this year’s final and due the lost time from a red flag at the start of the race, this was going to be a tall order. It finished 13th (25.7 miles). Sirocco welcomed a very nervous and quiet Abi to the party during the first race, achieving 17th (25.7 miles), not a bad effort at all for a first time out with Neve and Naomi.

A few minor tweaks and a couple of tyres changes during the break and we were back out on the track for Race 2. A gear change for Mistral and a mini service for Sirocco saw them both creep up in to the top 10. Mistral trundled round for the full 90 minutes finishing 6th (34.3 miles) and securing a place in the final thanks to Eloise, Maddy and Olivia. Sirrocco had a much better race finishing 10th (31.2 miles) and still putting in the same times for its laps as it was at the start. Blaze started well, taking the lead after the first lap and then sitting in for second until the last 15 minutes, where it was just too much to hold on to. Lap times started to die off finishing 3rd (37.4 miles) but another amazing achievement for Callum, Crystal and Ethan.

Overall a very successful trip for the team with a huge hand to Billy who has taken over the reins from Jessica. On to next week at Castle Combe where there will be a very competitive field.

We went to Castle Combe on the 16th September. We took all 3 cars with the event being used to try different styles of driving and new drivers. The event was very important for our oldest car Sirocco. Sitting in 54th place overall, it had a very good chance of not making the final. To add to the misery it had an accident in the practice which left it with 2 buckled wheels and a slightly bent axle. After a few minor fixes we started Race 1 with all 3 cars making it to the start line.

Race 1 went fairly well for all 3 cars. Blaze went off at a steady pace, sitting in 2nd and 3rd for long periods of the race. Unfortunately it dropped off in the last 15 minutes of the race, finishing 7th but with its best mileage of the season (38.9 miles). The aim was top 10 in this very competitive race so a pretty good effort. Sirocco and Mistral both trundled round finishing 19th (31.5 miles) and 16th (35.2 miles) respectively. Not a bad effort but still too close for comfort for Sirocco.

Race 2 saw a different style of driving for the Blaze team. An interesting experiment! Again, doing very well and finishing 7th with another 38.9 miles under its belt. Sirocco needed a huge improvement and it came from nowhere. It went out with 3 very determined young girls, finishing 11th (37 miles). Mistral did another trundle and did 35.2 miles finishing 13th.